State plans to destroy abandoned skiff on Wasilla's Seymour Lake unless its owner claims it

The state plans to destroy a 24-foot red and gray skiff that has been left on Seymour Lake in Wasilla, unless someone with a claim to it steps forward and pays the bill.

The Alaska Department of Natural Resources posted a notice Oct. 16 saying it intends to destroy and dispose of the open skiff. The boat's registration ran out in 2012. Before it is destroyed, an owner or anyone with a financial interest in it can take it back by paying the state's costs.

It isn't the only one on the lake this year. In August, DNR posted a notice about an 18- to 20-foot white cabin cruiser with blue striping near the borough boat ramp. Someone had reported it abandoned in July, and the state had no record of who owned it.

Last fall, a 30-foot float home named the "Drunken Rhino" got a similar notice from the state at Big Lake.

The boats are part of a larger problem. DNR's abandoned and derelict vessel program has documented more than 425 such boats in Alaska, and says many more go unreported, according to its program page. Abandoned boats can leak pollution, block waterways and threaten infrastructure, and they are one of the largest sources of marine debris from within the state, the department says.

Under state law, a boat can be declared derelict if it is sinking or sunk, blocking a waterway, endangering people or the environment, or left on public or private property without permission. Owners remain responsible for their boats. Leaving one behind can bring civil penalties of up to $1,000 a day, the department says.